We are focused around the Tech community

Over the past few days, Uber has been busy dealing with the controversy about its app being deceitful. They have some work to do to win back some hearts and minds. Today the company is making a move that will benefit its long-term business strategy and in so doing may help in other areas too.

That move is piloting a car-leasing program for people who want to be Uber drivers. Leasing will be through an Uber subsidiary called Xchange Leasing. Until this point, Uber had worked with Banco Santander in the US to offer a similar option to people, but now it will be done in-house. We don’t have any details on the what the monthly payment would be yet.

We do know that there will be both new and used cars up for lease. We also know that there is no limit on the amount of miles that you can drive. It looks like California, Georgia and Maryland will have access to this service at first. It probably wouldn’t take long for Uber to make it available to more states. Maybe even more countries after a time. Uber drivers at least have another option now.

Yesterday Rovio released the sequel to the insanely popular Angry Birds game, which was released in a number of iterations in the past. The game has its own merchandise, toys and anything you can think off.

The question is: will the Angry Birds 2 get the same response as the original title? Well, Rovio took it to Twitter and announced that Angry Birds 2 downloads surpassed one million in the first 12 hours, possibly because it’s free unlike the original Angry Birds.

Angry Birds 2 is better than its predecessor, and brings a number of challenging levels to play with improved graphics, multi stage levels and even pig bosses for you to take out as you move on with the game.

The Angry Birds are back in the sequel to the biggest mobile game of all time! Angry Birds 2 starts a new era of slingshot gameplay with super stunning graphics, challenging multi-stage levels, scheming boss pigs and even more destruction.

Gamers also get the ability to choose the birds they want to use and when, along with a number of new landscapes and spells to take on the bad piggies.

Facebook has revealed some more details on their plans to bring internet around the world, the company has released a photo of Aquila, their solar powered plane.

The Facebook Aquila solar powered plane was developed in the UK it has the same wingspan as a Boeing 737, but it weighs a lot less.

A full-scale version of Aquila — the high-altitude, long-endurance aircraft designed by our aerospace team in the UK — is now complete and ready for flight testing. Aquila has the wingspan of a 737 but weighs hundreds of times less, thanks to its unique design and carbon-fiber frame. When deployed, it will be able to circle a remote region for up to 90 days, beaming connectivity down to people from an altitude of 60,000 to 90,000 feet.

The company also announced that they have also had a breakthrough in their laser project and can now deliver Internet speeds of 10 Gbps.

The new OS X Yosemite 10.10.5 is now available for registered developers from the Mac App Store, we are expecting the final release to be some time next month, as El Capitan is expected to land in September.

Apple also released a new beta of iOS 8.4.1, this is also available for registered developers and the final version of this update is also expected to land next month.

Apple are going to be releasing iOS 9 some time this fall, this is expected to be made available some time in September along with the new iPhone 6S and 6S Plus smartphone and the new Apple TV.

Microsoft launched their new Windows 10 OS earlier in the week, the software is available as a free update to Windows 7 and Windows 8 users on PCs and tablets.

The company has now announced that over 14 million people have installed the new Windows 10 OS on their device in the first 24 hours.

Microsoft also said that there are many more users waiting for the update, as it is being rolled out in phases.

14 million installs of the new Windows OS in 24 hours is impressive and it suggests that Microsoft’s new OS could be very popular, we suspect the free upgrade option may have something to do with its popularity.

Microsoft will also bring their new Windows 10 software to smartphones later in the year and we previously heard a rumor that Windows 10 phone may land in November.

According to a recent report, the new Apple TV hardware will be made official at Apple’s iPhone 6S event in September.

Apple apparently pulled the updated Apple TV from WWDC as the hardware was not ready for release, we will now see the device in September.

The next generation Apple TV is expected to come with a new design, plus a new controller, the device is said to get the Apple A8 processor and will apparently come with more storage.

Apple are also expected to make apps and games available on this years Apple TV, this is something we have been hearing for some time and it will finally be introduced on September. The company will also launch a new Apple TV SDK and the updated device will also come with Siri.

The company has also been working on new TV streaming service and have been in talks with content providers for some time, this is still not ready for release and will not launch in September with the new device.

Former Top Gear presenters, Jeremy Clarkson, James Many and Richard Hammond will host a new motoring show for Amazon.

The new car show will be available on Amazon’s Prime video service which is available for free to members of Amazon Prime.

The new motoring show will be made available worldwide in 2016, although as yet there are no details on what the show will be called.

Jeremy Clarkson left Top Gear after an incident with a Top Gear producer and May and Hammond refused to carry on the show without him. Radio and TV presenter, Chris Evans, who is a massive car fun will present the new Top gear show.

If you’re a business that embraces technology, then cloud computing is essential for your business. In fact, cloud computing is nigh on essential for all businesses operating in the 21st century, as it reduces your IT costs, increases scalability, improves your business continuity and increases collaboration efficiency and flexibility. In this blog post, we aim to show you exactly why cloud computing is essential for your business.

Reduce IT Costs

If you move to the cloud, you’ll lower your IT costs. Although you’ll probably require the additional expense of new servers, by moving to the cloud you’ll lower the cost of future systems upgrades, eliminate the need for paying a systems expert, you’ll reduce time delays (which costs your business money) and you’ll reduce your energy consumption.

In the long-term, it’s a no-brainer.

Increasing Business Scalability

When you’re operating with the cloud, you can scale your business to suit your requirements… both up and down.

This means, rather than having to look for continuous upgrades that you don’t really need or use for the majority of the year, you’ll be able to run everything through a cloud service provider. This means that you’ll have more time to run your business instead of getting bogged down in admin.

Securing Business Safety

If you compute using the cloud, you’ll also safely secure your business should the worst happen. The cloud stores your data, so if you’re caught in a power cut or a natural disaster, you’re protected. It’s also stored in a safe location, so you can sleep safe in the knowledge that nobody is hacking your business’s information. This provides you with optimum production and minimal downtime.

Collaboration Efficiency

If you use cloud technology, you increase the shareability of your products (in a safe way, of course). This means that you can increase the number of projects you collaborate on, meaning you can work using modern methods.

Overall, this allows you to use contractors or people in multiple locations to complete projects, meaning you get the job done faster, with less confusion, and by using the right people. What could be better?

To conclude, cloud computing is perfect for pulling your business into the 21st century. So, if you’re looking to improve your software and want to improve your software, the way you handle large processes and reduce your costs in the process, then consider cloud computing and what it can do for you. Don’t just take our word for it, by the way. There are loads more reasons why you should use the cloud.

Samsung has announced its financial results for the second quarter of 2015 and the company has increased revenue in its mobile division due to the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge smartphones.

Samsung’s overall profits fell for the second quarter in a row, this time the profits were down by 8% on the same time last year, although their gross earnings increased.

Samsung Electronics announced financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2015. Samsung’s revenue for the quarter was KRW 48.54 trillion, a three percent increase quarter-on-quarter (QOQ), while the operating profit for the quarter was KRW 6.9 trillion, an increase of KRW 900 billion QOQ. In the company’s earnings guidance disclosed on July 7, 2015, Samsung estimated second quarter consolidated revenues would reach approximately KRW 48 trillion with consolidated operating profit of approximately KRW 6.9 trillion.

The overall QOQ improvement in earnings was largely due to strong sales in the Semiconductor Business, led by memory products and mobile application processors, as well as the Consumer Electronics (CE) Division which benefited from the launch of new TV models. Despite the launch of Galaxy S6, improvement to earnings was quite marginal due to low smartphone shipments and an increase in marketing expenses for new product launches.

Google’s Project Loon has been in the works for a while and now we have details on the first country that will use the project to bring widespread Internet access.

The government in Sri Lanka has announced that Google’s Project Loon will bring Internet access to the whole of the country.

This will be the first country in the world that will get universal Internet coverage from Google’s network of balloons.

The Project Loon Balloons will float in the sky at around 20 km above the surface of the earth and the balloons have solar panels and will provide LTE Internet connectivity, each one can cover an area of about 40KM in diameter.

The Meizu M2 Note was announced back in June and now the company has announced a smaller version of the device, the Meizu M2.

The new M2 comes with a 5 inch display that has a HD resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels and the device is powered by a 1.3GHz 64-bit MediaTek MT6753 processor.

Other specifications on the handset include 2GB of RAM and 16GB of built in storage, there is also a microSD card slot for expansion.

The Meizu M2 comes with front and rear facing cameras, on the front of the handset there is a 5 megapixel camera and on the back there is a 13 megapixel camera. The device also features a 2500 mAh battery, WiFi, Bluetooth and LTE, plus dual SIM card slots.

The handset comes with the company’s Flyme OS 4.5 which is based on Google’s Android 5.1 Lollipop, the device will be available in a range of colors and will retail for about $112.

Apple hasn’t revealed many details about their new Apple Spaceship Campus since the original designs were revealed.

We have some more details on what will be available for the public at the Apple Spaceship campus, the company has plans to launch a visitor center at the campus.

As well as a visitor center, there will also be an Apple Store that is open to the public and a cafe. The visitors center will feature an observation deck and it will be a glass structure with a carbon fiber roof and large skylights.

On the ground floor there will be a 2,386 square foot cafe, plus a 10,114 square foot Apple store, on top of this there will be an observation deck which will allow visitors to see the whole of the Apple campus.

Samsung Pay will launch in the US and South Korea shortly, the new mobile payment service is expected to launch in September.

Samsung is teasing out Samsung Pay in South Korea at the moment and now we have some details on Samsung’s plans for the service in Europe.

MasterCard has announced that they have partnered with Samsung to help launch the company’s mobile payment system in Europe.

“Samsung Pay is pleased to join forces with MasterCard to offer a simple and safe mobile payment experience enabled for wider merchant acceptance to MasterCard cardholders and issuers in Europe,” said Injong Rhee, EVP of Samsung Electronics, Global Head of Samsung Pay. “Both organisations are committed to ground breaking fintech innovations that will deliver on the promise of a true mobile wallet.”

“With the continued global growth and reliance on connected mobile devices, we are delighted to expand our relationship with Samsung by extending the reach of Samsung Pay and MDES to cardholders in Europe. Europeans have been leading the way in the adoption of new ways to shop, buy and make a payment. Through our strong partnership with Samsung we look forward to continuing to drive innovation in mobile commerce by creating simple and secure digital payment experiences for consumers,” said Javier Perez, President of MasterCard Europe.

Being a digital nomad can be an exciting life, not being tied down with a nine to five job and having the opportunity to work across the world. Like any kind job it does have its drawbacks, but as a relatively recent way of managing a career based around digital technology, there are constant developments to make it easier. Working for a big business or yourself, from home, a café or elsewhere can be enhanced with the following tools.

Nomad List

As its name suggests, this free tool is aimed specifically at nomads, digital or otherwise. It is a detailed guide to living and working in cities across the world, whether intended as a short or long-term option. With a forum for interacting with fellow digital nomads, all the essential bits of information required for working freely in every place are included. Basics such as monthly living costs and climate to the best coffee shops with Wi-Fi are all noted.

Buffer

Social media has become ever more important for working life. Sometimes though you’ll see an important item related to work but not have time to read it and soon forget. Buffer is a great tool for managing various social media channels and adding to a queue. Schedule posts to go live at a later time or store it all in the same place to stay organised.

Virtual Offices

Working away from a desk does mean that if you need to see business clients or investors, arranging to meet in a coffee shop doesn’t give the most professional impression. Having no fixed address or just your home’s also looks less than professional too. Having a virtual office allows you to put a prestigious address on your website without committing to a full-time contract; additionally, virtual office providers often have bricks and mortar facilities you can use for conducting meetings or delivering pitches.

Slack

Staying in touch with colleagues can be tricky when they’re all based in one or many offices all over the world and you’re working elsewhere. Slack is a simple and free app that allows numerous channels to be created for specific themes. Users choose which to join so you can keep up to date with appropriate projects and not be overloaded with irrelevant messages.

UberTravelling to various places it’s likely you’ll need a taxi or two to get there on time. Uber is a fairly new service which works in many cities across the world and saves time finding local taxi numbers. It easily finds an Uber taxi nearby and informs you how much it will be, allowing you to accurately work out how long the journey will take.